Chapter two: Princeton
I paced back and forth outside the door. I knew my mother was capable of many things: but she was crossing a line. I had barely time to show Snow around before she stole her away to talk about God knows what! My family was truly in disarray, father had been our reliable figure head for so long; he had taught me and Kane everything we knew. Mother was devastated when we learned his illness was terminal, and even more distressed when father proclaimed me as his successor. I understood that she thought Kane too unsympathetic for ruling and me too infantile; she never once withdrew from telling us this, but to pull aside my bride to be and tell her of this, well it was inexcusable. After quickly going on the pointless errand my mother sent me on, I returned to pace outside the study door. I just hoped that Snow would have her wits about her and be careful of my scheming mother. The doors slowly opened as Snow tip-toed out, "Snow, are you alright? What happened?" I exclaimed as I strolled closer.
She leapt, surprised by my increasingly shrinking proximity to her. "I'm very well, thank you Princeton. Your mother only wished to welcome me in private. That is all." She said somewhat evasively.
"Hmm, I suppose I should give you the tour of the castle." I stated more like a proclamation rather then asking for permission.
"While that would be quite lovely, I am very tired from the journey here, and would like to retire to my chamber, that is if it is acceptable with you?" she asked somewhat abruptly.
"Oh, of course, how foolish of me to forget, would you like me to send something up for you to eat? Or maybe get the maid to draw you a bath?" I asked trying to show how much I wished her to be happy.
"A bath would be wonderful, and a snack would be lovely, thank you again Princeton." I nodded slowly as she and I walked down the corridor to her room, and then as she entered the door I couldn't stop myself from asking "Snow, truly what did my mother discuss with you?"
She looked at me, as cold as the moment before I kissed her in the coffin and said "She said that she preferred me much more over all the other women you traipsed around with." She sang, each ring of her voice piercing me like a knife. I could see the tears welling up in her eyes. Apparently pain was an entrance fee in the royal family. The mahogany door thundered shut. I turned on my heel and ran as swift as I possibly could without raising any alarms. I screeched at a halt in front of my mother as she excited the hallway beyond the study.
"Mother," I panted "How could you! Not only disgrace you son with such mendacity, but also dishonor father and his memory once again!" As I spoke a sly grin emerged on my mother's face.
"Ah, so she believed me then. You see my son, only a woman who had a mind of her own, one who didn't follow your every whim and will, can marry my son. I need my sons to marry women who can take care of a family alone, as well as a country. I know what it is like, Princeton, to be abandoned and forgotten. I know the pains of being a mother without her husband, a queen without her king: and very few women could stand the pressure, and apparently Snow White isn't one of them!" She spat out, clearly pitying me. I stumbled backwards; my mother thought she was helping me by scrutinizing my bride to be. She thought that no women without a mind, soul and will of her own could be fit to rule. Well I knew my Snow had all of these, though Snow White didn't know of my father's plan or my curiosity of the future my father had prepared for me. She had no knowledge of the years I had spent dreaming of the maiden my father had betrothed me to: the maiden fair as snow, with hair as dark as ebony and lips as red as blood. No, Snow White knew not of my godmother whose love was much more real then that of my blood mother, a godmother who had always longed for her own child, and whose wish was granted mere hours before her death. Sadly all that Snow White knew of that tale was the stepmother who her father remarried and his eventual tragic death and her own horrific enslavement. Not of the love her mother had for her, or how a joyous future had been planned for us together, two kingdoms united by a friendship could never be as strong as one united by love my father always said.
I turned back to my mother, my true feelings hidden behind a masquerade of a smile and I spoke "Please mother, give Snow White a chance to prove herself; she has just met me and is new to the workings of our family. Let her get accustomed and then judge her by her real character." My mother seemed to contemplate this option for a moment before accepting these terms and nodding and strolling down the hallway as though we hadn't just had a shouting match. I slowly walked back to Snow's room determined to try to win her forgiveness when I herd a scream coming from down the corridor. I once again was running, this time not caring what people thought. I reached her room, to find the door thrown open and Kane standing there holding Snow by her wrist as she let out another shriek and kicked him about two inches away from his groin. My brain was torn between laughing hysterically at her trying to kick him and ripping his head off for touching her— the later won. I grabbed Kane's shirt and tore him away as I heard a yelp from Snow's direction and sickening crack as Kane released her wrist. I couldn't comprehend the tears behind me I was in such a state of pure rage that all I could do was pound my fists into my brother's gut. All I could think was "How dare he, the snake, the moron, the vulture!" Once my brother had squealed for the millionth time I released my grip enough to let him scuttle away like the monster he was. As I turned for the first time to really look at Snow, I felt nauseous again. Her hair was sopping wet and blood trickled from her forehead and mouth, she clutched her wrist trying to hold in tears and sobs as she bit her still bleeding lip. That was when I noticed she was wearing nothing but a towel. She sat, knees together elbows clutching the large brown, slightly wet, towel which was wrapped haphazardly around her bust. My brain had just switched gears from the brute that had beaten my brother to an actual human being; I crouched down and picked her up. She was as light as the day I woke her up, I tried not to move her much as to keep her wrist still. I spoke soothing words that my godmother had once sang to me "Love shall keep us strong, Love shall keep us safe. And love my dear is why I hold you as you cry."
She looked up at me with these big watery doe eyes and sobbed "Princeton, I'm sorry, oh my. I'm so very sorry. He was watching me, I didn't know. I was so scared. I thought I was alone, and he said that if I yelled that you wouldn't come. And I believed him. And then he hit me when I tried to run and I fell into the bath and then…then." She couldn't finish as another fit of tears came over her. My mind raced as I realized what my brother had done "He was watching me, into the bath, He was watching me, and he said that if I yelled that you wouldn't come." The snake, he had watched before she got into the bath and then he attacked her and God know what he would have done if she hadn't screamed!
I shuddered to think, my precious Snow, I spoke softly "Don't worry, no one will ever harm you again, my love. And there is nothing to apologize for; all you need to know is that I will always be there for you, always." She smiled delicately back at me and then fainted from the pain, her limp body collapsing in my arms.